SELF TAUGHT VS BOOTCAMP VS COLLEGE | Which Is Right For You? | Bonus Job Search Hack

[@a4yster]

Me on day one: bring it on, I can code like a code_Jesus Me after a month of trying to learn to code: Im certain that Im medically retarded.

[@charleska7502]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣👍

[@Mariasbabyalive]

Me installing Python this will be amazing! Me after the installation completed what that heck will I do with this.

[@howardlam6181]

I bet you haven't tried the difficult questions on hackerant yet. To get linear time performance, it's insanely difficult.

[@a4yster]

@@howardlam6181 What is hackerant? Google returns twitter.

[@howardlam6181]

@@a4yster typo. HackerRank.

[@eraLdcoiL]

This is why social engineering should be a soft skill everyone needs to learn. That first minute of you getting a phone number from the person is the reason I love this channel.

[@Ricky-jl1wf]

I've been to college, I've learned on my own and I got a bootcamp course on my back. I agree to everything on this video.

[@sortof3337]

LMFAO. Same here.

[@illgates2940]

Same. I’m in a boot camp now and I love it.

[@kineticuncertainty]

Are you learning anything besides front end web development? You can get a 2 year degree in front end crap. Computer science dont typically teach you front end stuff because its so basic and changes so fast.

[@keshauntyler745]

What boot camp are you guys using?

[@illgates2940]

Ke'Shaun Tyler - I’m actually attending a boot camp with physical classes. Very helpful.

[@87DAM1987]

“That’s how you do it. You just call them up.” Yes sir I’m 31 been in the electrical field since I was 18 and I do not apply on websites. I call, either get appointment for interview, or an email to send my resume

[@liranpiade4499]

I guess I need to think of jobs more like government bureaucracy. I have a somewhat unusual situation so things go exceptionally slowly for me and none of the automated systems work because I'm an edge case none of the government programmers accounted for. I gotta call and talk to a human, vocally, live, to get things done. I hate it but I guess you gotta do what you gotta do

[@JoshuaFluke1]

Sorry for that mid video puppy break. Had to get some puppy time meetings in. But - As you can see, I break the rules alittle bit, and push some hustle to get the info I want. This is what it's about. Think outside the box. If you think that's bad, I would compare it to basic economics, if I buy something at $10, and sell it at $20, should I tell you I bought it at $10? No. I want my profit, that's just how business works. Should your boss tell you how much profit you make him in comparison to how much you get paid? Fat chance. You have to make YOURSELF your mental point of origin. You can choose to be Mr. Follow the Rules, or choose to push some limits, and make your life happen. You can't help you friends or family, or anyone else - until you help yourself first. If you enjoyed the video, maybe share it.

[@michaelsteinberg205]

Josh, I discovered you 3 days ago and I cannot thank you enough for making these videos. If you have 1 minute, can you please answer a question for me? Do you think nano-degrees are good? Do you think udacity is worth doing? If you already answered this, can you link me a video where you address this?

[@JoshuaFluke1]

@@michaelsteinberg205 Nano degree is useless. It's nice clickbait though. The curriculum itself is great.

[@jemjem8902]

Lol puppy meetings

[@QuadraAce]

Such e healthy mindset

[@snetsrac6454]

Dude, you need to use that fluffball to your advantage. More puppy breaks = more views. Think Smooth McGroove's cat. kzbin.info/www/bejne/a3jFkGesaZp6aLs

[@chainsmokers]

The fact that you mention how much learning to code is going to trouble your self-confidence and challenge your ability to cope when stuck on something was great to hear. I'm a 48yo web designer making the move sideways into dev and currently learning React/Typescript. It has been one of the most challenging things I have ever done, due to those very reasons. So good to hear it's not just me! Cheers.

[@armanbhimani1267]

Josh killing it once again. Great video explaining the differences between educational resources.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

#roadto100k

[@nerdslogic9423]

Self is difficult. I'm doing it through udemy and exactly what Joshua said happens. You literally forget everything. So what I did to rectify this because I learned html and css through solo learn before udemy is write everything down in a notebook or note pad and categorize it In which way works best for you then use each think that you learn slowly and put it together to build your code. As you go on it get easier and better. The biggest thing I'm learning with udemy is the user interaction level is non existent which drives many to quit where as solo learn is interactive. I'm constantly on w3schools and stackoverflow. Just have to do what works best for you.

[@nylesprint]

He's not killing it, he's #CRUSHINGIT #HRterms lol

[@Cjust15]

Be passionate about what you’re doing . Passion will discipline you and will ground you . It’s not enough to do something because of the money otherwise the dopamine will wear off faster than you can blink and you’ll already be burnt out probably before you’d even get that dream salary . I’ve had those moments of wanting to give up in ux design but I keep pushing myself each and every day . I’m working on my case studies right now and hoping that within a month I’ll be finished with everything.

[@_jko]

I'm self taught. There are at least two cons you didn't mention: - it's hard to measure your progress. It's hard to know where your are compared to those who got a job. Without a degree of any kind, because I dropped out, I was able score 98th percentile in PluralSight, get into Toptal network, but still couldn't find a full time job. It was infuriating that my friend who had significantly worse coding friend was able to get a job but not me, because he at least got a degree in something. Another downside of self teaching is the lack of structure. There's no syllable. You have to structure what you want to learn, and sometime what you choose to learn is useless. For instance I've become some what proficient at knowing the weird quirks of JavaScript, but I think it might've been more beneficial to be 80% good at JavaScript and Python rather than 98% good at any one thing.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

You should make my videos. This is way better than my content

[@zulzdn9348]

@@JoshuaFluke1 lol

[@tyres9]

😂😂😂

[@SaintSaint]

Hey Jai, I'm a self taught computer programming nerd as well. I've felt your pain deeply and many times. Yet, I now have a stable job with high pay and you will too. Just don't give up. Over the past 15 years in the profession, I have had a 70% chance of getting a high-paying job if I make it to the interview(I've only gotten 10 interviews in my life). I have a very hard time getting to the interview process even though I work hard on each application/resume/cover letter. I don't condone "skipping the line" like Josh offered(though kudos on the intermediate social engineering). If I "skipped the line," it would feed any thoughts that I might have of being an imposter(however untrue) for the rest of my time with the company. I do really well if there are some programmers in the interview panel. I bet you can rock an interview if they just give you a chance to get in the door. I too have felt the lack of structure(and the anxiety which comes with it). Yet a lack of structure is as much a downside as a positive as you can tailor yourself to be a god damn ninja, not some cookie-cut man-child who rarely has to think "Am I future proofing my learning with this investment of time?" I created MEH hackerspace to leverage the lack of structure inherent in self learning. We create study groups and tiger teams. I'm no stranger to failure, so I don't fear it as badly as most people who allow their life to be more charted by others. You will have that courage going for you as well(if you don't already). Failure means my hackerspace has gone through 10 years of 8 different buildings before we purchased our own building in the most expensive part of town with half a dozen unflappable intellectuals and 58 members. We are a barely solvent 501(c)3 non-profit business that feeds talent(and sometimes clients) to our sister for-profit business for 7-digit audits, incident response, and risk analysis. You have passion. You're a fighter. You're one of us. You belong kicking butt with those who have a college degree and those who don't. A programmer in an interview is going to think "how can Jai help me on my projects." A manager will also think "how will Jai grow into new positions." So that degree means a lot for growing into management and lead positions. You can offset your future manager's concern by showing interest in continuing your education(balance this with examples of loyalty so they don't fear you getting an education and leaving). I suggest getting some top-level certifications like the CISSP or the MCSE if you're aiming to break into a middle or higher position. If you don't have much experience on professional teams... well.. internships suck, but they're vital.

[@snk-js]

yes yes yes man!

[@herantd]

Started by following udemy courses, ended up changing my career path by attending university and taking cs degree. The thing with college/university is that they force you to work on projects which is not necessarily fun but very knowledgeable and that is hard to do on your own no matter how psyched you are about coding.

[@theucrafter1666]

Sounds good to a lazy person to me

[@Remer714]

@@theucrafter1666 Exactly. If you have little or no motivation, College and University will make you do your projects nonetheless and their "learning plan" is often designed to make you learn that stuff. (If you don't do your stuff, then you fail uni. And probably everyone will try to avoid this.)

[@Wiedzemir]

@@theucrafter1666 A lazy person in a University is a soon to be drop out. Universities aren't school, they don't force you to do things. You just miss deadlines, you under perform, fall behind and fail courses. Nobody is going to force you to do anything in a Uni. You're your own responsibility. This perception a Uni being an adult daycare comes not from technical or mathematical disciplines.

[@pengekcs]

or you can try coursera or edx courses. most have nice homeworks + auto grading your code by testing it ;) not bad.

[@herantd]

​@Dr. Fondlecrotch I live in Norway, i pay like 50$ per semester at my university. I know lots of people from abroad coming here to study, not sure if they got to pay more than us tho.

[@barricuda]

"I went to Georgia Tech." Yeah? I graduated from the hood.

[@ronin2963]

The Barricuda tech is literally in the ghetto

[@gijsvandergiessen1150]

Well, better not say that during an interview though xD Have a like.

[@barricuda]

@Journi2Lyfe I live in Albuquerque South Valley, IDK what these guys are talking about. just looking at the vehicles parked on the streets in the neighborhoods around georgia tech... That's not ghetto. Sure the houses are ancient, but that doesn't make a ghetto.

[@project_lkh7009]

@Journi2Lyfe portions of south Africa :(

[@Appachoppa112]

Journi2Lyfe ghettoes are inner city and section 8

[@danielzavalahuerta]

Due to personal reasons my best bet was self-taught and i have been doing it full-time since January. I believe i am job ready so I am going to start sending out applications tomorrow, just need some finishing touches on my projects. Thanks for all the advice Josh, if it weren't for your channel showing me that i have a chance, i would have never went for it.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

Thats awesome man.

[@danielzavalahuerta]

No luck yet, but i am still waiting for responsed from some. I want a job in California and it seems almost all want React.js, Python, C++, and most of them want SQL not NOSQL. I only know the MEAN stack currently so I am learning React, Python, and some SQL to make myself more useful and then hopefully i will get more responses.

[@MrCmon113]

"I've got an engineering degree." *rolls eyes* "A mechanical engineering degree." Holy moly, grats dude.

[@erdboizen7926]

Thanks Josh am on the self taught route, can't afford a CS Course or a Bootcamp, i hustle to feed my self, wonna hustle to code as well

[@JoshuaFluke1]

you got this

[@pitchblackc0d314]

we are ok the same path bro, keep going and you will be good in all part ok

[@GodIsGood-Always]

@@JoshuaFluke1 what is the best way to contact you, man? I'd like to send you a quick short email.

[@arthurserafim1400]

I really love yours videos, Josh. They are like, at the same time, realistic and motivational. You are saying like: "Shit will happen, it's not gonna be easy, but you can do it." and i really appreciate that. Thank you so much

[@RendernStattGendern]

(in my opinion) as a absolute beginner you have to code at least 2 hours per day EVERY DAY for a few months to get at least somewhere , else you will forget to much important informations. Everybody should see this video!

[@nichtsistkostenlos6565]

I think you can be a bit more flexible and make it work as long as you're coding consistently, preferably every day. I was able to get away with coding a decent amount in my free time on the weekends (4 - 5 hours a day) and then doing small amounts of coding (30 min to an hour of basic programs, practice problems, etc.) during the week to keep my mind fresh, just because my schedule at the time was not conducive to coding for multiple hours at a time Monday to Friday. But you're right, if you can just set aside 2 hours a day in your schedule to just sit down and code, that's a pretty good recipe for success. There's a lot of concepts and tidbits of information you have to know thoroughly to code well, so unless you're some kind of prodigy of conceptual and rote memorization, you'll just find yourself having to mull over the same stuff every time you code if you're only coding a couple of days a week.

[@wolvAUS]

Agree. I've been doing CS50 2 Hours a day and now I'm considering a CS degree.

[@teacherdan2089]

Shiiiiit. I'm ready to do ten hours a day. Of course right now at step zero, I'm just staring up at this giant mountain of unknown.

[@wolvAUS]

@@teacherdan2089 don't burn out

[@judithjanneck1719]

It's like riding a bike. Except the bike is always evolving and getting new features. But once you learn the basics you can ride with the bike.

[@isidoreaerys8745]

“You’re gonna have to be okay with feeling like Forrest Gump, like ‘I am not a smart man’.” I died.

[@cw9790]

me too lol

[@anammorar]

I like your mentality. I'm graduating from a technical high school with a Digital Design degree, and plan to work for an editorial book for two years part-time job since I want to learn how to properly draw. I've been searching for five years, and finally got what I was looking for with a lot of extraordinary information about art, marketing, entrepreneurism, design, and still working with animation. My dream is to become an animated and a writer to inspire people. Also, I watched your video of "what I wish I knew at my 20's or didn't waste time". I'm glad there's another young person that thinks the same I do. Thanks, Joshua

[@kishukyle5352]

Thanks for making this video. I feel better knowing that there is someone out there who is honest about how confusing and mind challenging learning to code makes me feel. Hopefully, I'll learn to code and change my career and life.

[@macachist]

I'm going to a local city specific boot camp, I was lucky to be able to do it because I had a college fund set up by my late grandfather that I never used. So far it's really good and I enjoy it, they're teaching us everything from front end to back end and at the end teaching us how to go through white board interviews and how to set up resumes and how to find jobs.

[@ericsnow3520]

Josh this is an informative videos but your degree wasn't in CS or Software Engineering and I believe that if it was it would be something you'd use much more. I am self-taught but also decided to go to school at an older age (25) and did 2 years of community college (paying cash working full time so NO LOANS) which allowed me to qualify for scholarships and other merit based financial help. If you can go to school for CS of Software Engineering for a GOOD PRICE its very worth it. Many self-taught programmers I know don't have as solid of a base in many fundamentals when it comes to HOW to think. Not to say you CANT learn this totally solo, but a formal education can be VERY valuable if you take time to learn how to utilize it. Like you said, college is for networking. A good school will have a million resources you can use to help find jobs. I don't want to write a book here but I feel like you kind of discount the value of a degree for a good price. Anyways great content keep it up man!

[@JoshuaFluke1]

I just dont see the value.

[@taylorp5444]

I don't code but I love your videos. Thank you and keep 'em coming!

[@JoshuaFluke1]

Will do!

[@seanpaulson9098]

Lol that was some hustlin ass shit at the beginning. I love it.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

real recognize real

[@emanuelcepoi]

Holy shit. I don't usually comment on youtube vids, but that was a sick intro cold calling the company. Ahhhahaha, nice one

[@WilsonGalter]

"it's a mental thing, you have to be okay with being stuck!" So true!

[@soraaoixxthebluesky]

I think self taught is the only choice I have right now. Wish me luck. - former Automotive Engineering Student with shitloads of outstanding debt. (Edit) I just wanna say Thank You guys! You guys are awesome!

[@carldrogo9492]

😂

[@Itsrichayo]

Good luck and enjoy it.

[@bassplayer807]

I think that’s why if I want to get into Machine Learning through Siraj Ravel’s method, and use EdX, or Andrew’s machine learning course from Coursera

[@juniorkhan650]

Same bro i got into wyotech a few years ago and took out a student loan and i was GLAD THEY BANKRUPTED and my loan was pardoned, im getting into IT also

[@Appachoppa112]

Good luck my guy

[@sigma682]

I think once you find something you’re passionate about it doesn’t feel like work, and you find the motivation to dive in, and get excited about the exploration of this new thing. You don’t pick up a new video game and complain about or hate having to learn all the mechanics. You actually dive-in eagerly and push through to that light bulb moment and that euphoric experience is rewarding and might even be the whole reason you play games.

[@rndargis0]

I started to learn c++ at 16 year old . Then I knew that I wanted to be a programmer, so I took some class learning robotics. In the meantime I’ve found a job in QA for a company that’s making real-time X-ray software. Now I’ve got my diploma and I’m still doing QA , but I’m doing low levels testing , like finding the bandwidth difference between NUMA nodes or testing some cuda kernels. I’ve love that job and I feel really lucky to get to the point where I like doing overtime so early in my life !

[@GinnHardcore]

Stack overflow giving you a big middle finger, couldn't be more accurate such a toxic enviroment on there

[@SaintSaint]

Thank god. Until this video... I felt like I was very alone in that thinking. I use a little slack channel for computer nerds in the vast lonely state of Montana. They are amazing and I never feel unwelcome. I also have a brick and mortar hackerspace. I recommend checking out your local hackerspace.

[@sethtucker8963]

They can be a real bag of d*cks on there, but the worst part is usually the very popular but outdated answers.

[@bjornarmar2462]

Saint Saint, I’m strongly considering packing up and moving my family out to Montana. Good to hear that there’s at least some hope and community for an aspiring developer.

[@skilz8098]

Except for me; I always try to help if the question is at least readable and understandable and they provide at least some code to look at... I am self-taught so I know what it's like to have limited help and limited resources when first starting out...

[@wtfzalgo]

Still, at least 50% of us wouldn't be able to work without it. I agree it can be toxic, but probably we're able to find answers to our predicaments 90% of the time also thanks to its strict rules and toxicity. Else we would have the umpteenth Yahoo answers or Quora.

[@kimsuelo]

I changed from computer engineering to business/finance for personal reasons, but computers and software are still my passions. You have motivated me to continue in a self-taughting route and see in the future what will fit me best, so I guess I’ll get the best and worst from both worlds. Thank you for your content!

[@shinobi1x]

Subbed. Somehow, you were recommended to me. It's like YT knows I'm starting a coding/programming course from scratch. I don't know a thing about computers or programming. So I'll be here for now on till i learn this. I think this is perfect for me. I like being alone and solving problems or learning something for hours on end. Alsways wanted to do something with computers and like the idea i can do a lot of this at home as a potential option. Welcome to my interest. Lol!

[@VegasRDL]

You and I both bro. Best of luck to you.

[@izamalcadosa2951]

I worked at Google and I know for a fact, at least at the site I was at, everyone had a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in CS, IT, Business or Math, if they worked as a JSWE or any high level tech jobs.

[@Eduardo-fk7ft]

Whatever you think is complicated, once you understand it, it becomes simple. - me

[@touchtech8612]

And water is wet

[@boubouna.]

And my shit smells

[@Lemon-yn7kk]

very cool

[@D0omC0okie]

@@touchtech8612 water isn't wet

[@MadeInChina81]

This is gold. 100% true about problem solving. It's never the same solution every time. You have to go at it (similar problems) differently. Very good advice, start with the self-taught approach to see where you stand first to understand your own abilities before moving on to something requiring money, time etc.

[@Sypheara]

In UK for our computing science degree it was VERY focused. You could choose sub specialisations but there was no chance to take say an art history module lol. Is quite weird from a UK perspective i think hearing about that as that won't help you at all in your subject. My third year was all graphics shaders and heavy shit like that which has honestly made what i do in industry look like a casual cakewalk (decided not to go into games as pretty much all big games companies are trash - that is something that would be fun to cover im sure..) I learned alot with it honestly and it worked for me. I think it heavily depends on WHAT and WHERE you choose as well - no point getting into debt for useless courses. For me it was the best route because i actually just kept hitting a load of boundaries, i was young and didnt know where the hell to actually start. Resources are far better now.

[@giannibertuzzi]

Thank you for the insight. In August I will start my journey studying Computer Science in the UK (I'm from Italy btw). I'm super excited, i'm just hoping it will work fine for me too. Did you guys have the ability to choose specific sub specialisations in your degree program right off the bat or after getting the foundations down say from second or third year?

[@iorekby]

I also think another option for people is and intensive 1 year CS masters courses that are popular in countries like the UK, that are specifically aimed at *non-CS* undergrads. They can get you a good foundation in a year, and you have the industry links with a lot of the universities so it's much easier to land a professional internship as part of your masters dissertation. Additionally, I would also mention they are generally cheaper than post-graduate education in the USA, even factoring in the masters takes place over 1 year.

[@exz1199]

My experience is self-taught for 6+ months -> 3-year university in a CS program. Many of the pros in the bootcamp option correspond to university. 1) Network with other struggling students - it's important to build a solid group of friends/acquaintances. Many time I've seeked help for one thing or another and vice versa. 2) Network of teachers to lean on - TA are generally pretty good in my experience and some go wayyyy out of there way to stay after hours and make sure you understand the concepts. 3) Network of students after they get jobs - see 1) 4) Peer pressure and accountability - It's normal to see how your friends/classmates are doing on assignments. Sometimes you find out that you're not putting in enough work or starting early enough. Good way to stay on top of things. And obviously, grades. 5) Build projects - several of my friends work with professors on research assignments. And, going to school doesn't preclude you from building side projects.

[@alexpastrana7840]

You give such a valuable opinion, youre appreciated man

[@bearbarbie]

Dude - your videos are helpful and honeslty, really helping me pull myself out of some severe depression while job hunting. It's hard and I moved to a new state and was obviously not prepared ( big fish in a small town moving to an ocean). Big wake up call. Thank you, thank you, FUCKING thank you.

[@Ahkmedren]

I've only just stumbled across your channel, mostly indulging in your videos about workers' rights and how fucked Corporate is. I knew/felt these things already and seeing your videos have really helped me feel that I'm not just insane for wanting a livable wage. And your videos, like these, on coding and that line of education has gotten me to get the lead out and really buckle down with these udemy courses I grabbed. Your information has helped me reign in my expectations for the future and also help me realize I just want to do web dev work (if possible) long enough to get experience, get an adequate pay for a bit while saving up for my own business and piece of land. Thank you for not only your educational material, your workers rights support.. But your personal videos and things you've dealt with / are dealing with. I can tell in just a few days you are tenacious and impassioned and it's so fuckin nice to see. Cheers!

[@VennYT]

These videos have been helpful for me, especially as I'm nearing the end of my bootcamp course. Thanks for the content.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

Glad they help venn!

[@pclp9958]

Can I ask what bootcamp? and if you think it is worth it?

[@sarahmeecham6654]

I continue to be blown away by your humility end high intelligence.! You are giving one of the most valuable services to the public that a person can give. Thank you so much!

[@bcorvalanAmil]

I love this video, the way you expose your feelings and thoughts helped me deal with my own doubts. I am very grateful. From Argentina

[@migovas1483]

"I question my ability to do this every day". that is exactly how I do my job, and what forces me to improve everyday. Thanks for the Video, man. I work on pipeline for VFX and while is not the ubber most hardcoding can get is still "coding", I have been on this road for about 2-3 years, and while I get deeper and deeper, I wake up everyday thinking " I know nothing, and I still don't know what I really Don't know" and this makes me feel great when I move forward with something new. Totally self taught, because family, time and budget.True story.

[@CookieManCookies]

I was self taught, I really liked writing code. I went to college, and was bamboozled by how terrible the job market was. I tried going to bootcamp, but it was real sketchy. So I decided not to.

[@yobeenocreative6984]

Enjoying your videos. Just reinforces that I am on the right path. I am a former game-dev of 11 years, a tech artist who got hooked with code using Maya Embedded Language to speed up 3d art production. Since then I have learned enough C# with Unity 3D to code most stuff I need and now attempting to retrain, shifting to frontend dev for constructing my own site and potentially stuff for others in the future. Everything I have learned so far has been self taught with the help of tutorials and google search. So much to learn, but just have to keep at it, keep positive, keep driven - and it's not CAN I LEARN something, but WHEN I LEARN IT and WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW FIRST. Thanks for the motivation and industry insights, and All the Best!

[@ahmx278]

I am in university right now, started a software engineering degree because it was one of two options for me, felt lost for some time but now I realized web development is really interesting. just started out last month my self-taught journey and only have 5 months to make it work. aiming to get a decent internship then a job down the line :) . watching this video made me realize my mental strength is really good for this career path I chose.

[@MichaelDeLaRosa]

Similar boat. I’m going to do software engineering because I need a challenge besides learning psychology.

[@MichaelDeLaRosa]

Ahmed Yousuf How is your journey?

[@-felt]

So ive been following you for a bit and came across this video today. The part about working nights and not being able to fit part-time or full-time into your schedule really hit home for me. Ive just finally started a course now thats 'full time' but 90mins away from home as they were the only place willing to take me on parttime. Between thr course load, my fulltime job as nightshift machine operator and 3 hour round trip travel, i barely have time to sleeep let alone anything else. But sometimes we have to make do with short term sacrifice to be able to 'live' later down the line.

[@vsp540]

im self taught and i just turned 13. he's right this is a really hard path. But don't give up !

[@oceanesdiary]

The part at the end about the fact that most jobs/colleges have a script and tech doesn't (and well, other of course) really resonated with me. I'm a DevOps, the only of my building, number of times I go "the hell am i supposed to do this". Dealing with that pressure, with that not knowing, with that continuous learning is though.

[@TheQA247]

My whole career in Test Engineering is self-taught. As we speak, I'm tasked with working in node. I don't kno-de. ;) (Python mostly). But its a thing I work through and videos on YT have helped. It does take discipline.

[@pedronunes8766]

Thank you! I've been doing it on my own and twice already I've got stuck with CSS and been demoralised for a week not wanting to come back to it and when I get the will to come back I find the solution easily. Bootcamp was something I was planning before the lockdown and the refund policy seems quite fair.

[@mr.precision5039]

Started my first day at Flatiron School today and so far I love it. Dropping out of college was a hard decision, but it was the right one for me.

[@hasnatshah2425]

i also drop my college but now i want to go back to college what was your experience

[@bmccoy22]

im thinking about going there. do you think it's worth it, or should i go the self taught route??

[@mindsetinvestors1579]

Mr. Precision How did it go for you?

[@zenec_]

@@bmccoy22 everybody is self taught at some level, u'r gonna have to learn a lot of things by yourself so the real question is "BOOTCAMP VS COLLEGE", getting a diplome will get you a job and from there you can get experience and keep learning new things by yourself so you can get a better job if you want, or a promotion. but thats just my opinion. But all 3 options works and as long as you work hard u'll get where you wanna be and that's the thing to remember => HARD WORK :)

[@PQSxSins]

You don't know how much relief finding this video has brought me, I've been struggling with the aspect of feeling impotent and lonely. I'm still struggling to even learn the fundamentals, I thought my teacher in HS was sort of careless and a little uninterested but now I realize she's just emphasizing the aspect of going out and finding the solution yourself. I always thought that concept of "problem solving" was something to do with arithmetic expressions but now I realize it's quite literally finding a solution to a problem.

[@COMMANDERFOX31]

Kudos for the awesome job trick in the beginning. You pretty much got yourself a straight phone interview without the Indeed filtering.

[@MarkoVucen]

social engineering...

[@REgamesplayer]

That is manipulating people and being proud of it. Furthermore, it highly depends on person whom you are calling as it might just annoy them.

[@MagnumIsAG]

What I love about your critique is the harsh reality you paint. Totally necessary and truly helpful. Cheers bro!

[@alecaldrinelakra1653]

You really boosted my self confidence I have been trying to be a full stack developer from last 2 years . It takes time there is always something new to learn . Thanks for your advice

[@johnnyj4425]

Dude I swear, you have given the best life advice I've heard so far over the millions of videos on youtube, Your Amazing Bro, Keep it up!

[@xN4VYS34Lx]

I’ve programmed for 6 years now and have sold professional level software, at age 23... Self taught is the way too go, because then you tend to focus more on what section of programming is best for you... there is sub categories too programming. In school you pretty much learn the base libraries, because the computer science instructor generally is not a dev them self’s or at least been out of the work field for so long they lost grasp of what’s import... all they do is teach. But being self taught you’ll naturally find your strengths in programming... - web dev - reverse engineering - game dev -application dev ... etc... And you’ll focus more on THOSE specific libraries. I do minor system engineering so I will almost always use Windows.h, filesystem.h, libusb.h

[@laughinelf]

What do you consider is the best way to get an understanding of what strength you want to find? Doing a udemy course in javascript or like udacity?

[@sixmileswest]

Thank you for this video. Simple and honest.

[@zoeya5668]

i am already questioning if im smart enough to do this and i havent started

[@celibacyrecords]

Me lmfao

[@adrianrodriguez6282]

Try it i felt the same way and honestly its a decent skillset to have for life.

[@simonbarker980]

Been doing dev for over 20 years and that Gump quote resonates but even after all this time I still worry about running into a problem I can't solve even though experience should tell me you always manage through in the end. Depends on the environment you work in of course, in a small office it's easy to occasionally bounce things off others but no such luxury when you work alone.

[@GBlunted]

Lack of inherent Network could be a big problem when self taught. You need access to people who can do it better so you can get help when stuck and it's good to be able to help others that are stuck. I lucked out and #php and #linux on Efnet was there for all the years I was learning stuff myself! Lack of a Network irl (with real people) was why I went to college, thought I'd find a better Network. But I didn't and should have just stayed home and kept getting work from online forums and irc chatrooms because that shit was working out so much better than I realized at the time... Whoops!

[@123Bosniak]

Lucked out means you had luck and therefore people to help you. Just FYI, I'm a grammar nazi

[@KickinUpDust024]

You are a very wise brother. I'm glad I came across your videos.

[@noboty4168]

I wish this video existed back when I was in high school.

[@thankunext1625]

I literally just realized I want to be a software engineer like a day ago and im a senior psych major so now after a breakdown, Im delving into learning code from the bottom up, and once I known the basics from self-study on my own in the several months I have left before I graduate, I'll likely be attending a bootcamp in the summer and then looking for a job. i wish I had known this like freshman year so I could switch my major but its encouraging to know that other people have been in way worse positions then me and have still done it and landed nice jobs so yeah... wish me luck! 🙏

[@teesharp5737]

I love talking about this subject. I found the best way was to get a 3 year CS degree + learn online courses along the way. You get networking + practical learning + projects + theoretical learning all at the same time. If you can't afford a 3 year CS degree, I would highly suggest to still not go for a bootcamp because the ROI is better for cheaper courses. As a self-taught, a 40 hour Udemy course that costs $13.99 still gives you assignments and projects so you can build your portfolio while a bootcamp is 10-15k upfront, and not a lot of boot camps offer refunds. As for the networking aspects, I highly recommend Meetup as it's a great app to meet like-minded individuals who also code in X language and you can make friends with them and work on projects together especially during this time. Of course, this is all assuming you are getting into CS for a good reason other than money.

[@caloski]

hey! I'm self-taught, thank you for pointing out our struggles! NICE VIDEO! REAL RECOGNIZES REAL!

[@JoshuaFluke1]

We out here

[@zakd4665]

I went to a coding boot camp. Origin Code Academy in San Diego about 4 years ago and it was one of the best decisions of my life.

[@blonduose]

Man, I wasn't unmotivated at this time, but you motivated me a lot more about learning web dev by myself. And you saying that coders usually work alone all day, it's like perfect for me! Like what a lovely job being alone all day :D

[@TheAtiesWhat]

i think "self taught" you'll have to do regardless, since once you're on the job, and all of a sudden the company infrastructure was on premise, then they decide to migrate to AWS or Azure, you'll just have to self teach yourself to be able to continue your job.

[@theonlyv0ld332]

I've been coding for almost 3 years now, college didn't work for me, I'm done procrastinating. I'll challenge myself to put together a resume, portfolio, and some projects and get a job. I'll update this comment once I get that first job. I'm 19 by the way. The only problem for me is I'll procrastinate and lose motivation at times and fall off my path, but those bad habits ends right here. Also for about a year I spent mainly stuck with tutorials, then the following year I got a regular retail job and ended up not doing much code. Finally everything just hit me right in the face sometime in the end of 2020 and I knew I needed to push myself to get a Developer job. I quit my retail job a few months ago, dropped out of college last year, and now it's time for me to make a change in my life.

[@nerdslogic9423]

Anyone doing their learning through udemy I recommend using solo learn or any type of user interactive coding programs or apps that provide something to keep you interested. Joshua couldn't be more right about udemy making you lose interest and not remember anything. Keeping yourself interacted is the key.

[@bfsbawb]

Self teaching myself at the moment and it’s going pretty good!

[@sumtingwong8768]

Literally everything you learn in college can be found online and in books for free and can be learned in half the time

[@Copperhell144]

Books are not free tho

[@jakemaughan3818]

"Your self-confidence is going to hurt" ..... That my friend is an understatement. 16:37 - The truth! Great video. I'm in college as a web developer and started out self taught. There are definitely different approaches for different people. Definitely start out learning on your own before you commit to any of the paths to learning. It is going to be a large investment in time/money/sanity/confidence/failure (those fluctuate depending on which route you choose) but its totally worth it. Keep up the awesome videos!

[@Gorilla_ADV]

I'm three months into getting a bachelor 's degree in web design and development at full sail university, I figured if I'm going to spend 30k at a boot camp I might as well spend a bit more a get a degree.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

sounds reasonable, full sail is for profit I believe though.

[@BoredBricks]

Some people say Full Sail isn’t a real college.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

@@BoredBricks its a for profit college, with questionable accreditation.

[@BoredBricks]

Joshua Fluke That’s what I’m saying.

[@JoshuaFluke1]

@@nick_jacobif you go to college and its not ABET its not a college a business using the buzzword 'university'. Why thats legal. I don't know

[@haitianbrother]

You are the Realist. Thank you so much for this great content.

[@mcjdblog]

I am sooooo lucky that I 1. figured out that I love coding early in my life (high school), 2. that my family is supportive of my decision to go to a bootcamp (flatiron school nyc) instead of college, and 3. That my family is willing to let me stay at home rent-free while I go thru bootcamp. I am thoroughly enjoying even just the prep work for flatiron school so I really can't wait to get started (and eventually start my career)

[@pedjpedj9449]

Mary Claire looking into that school too, and also doing the free intro course atm! best of luck to you

[@toeknee811]

Thank you!, i am self taught and I have been loosing motivation and questioning myself lately. Your video game me motivation to keep my head up and back to it.

[@wanafnanharizwanzahran8131]

when u ask stackoverflow for help, well they will give u a BIG MIDDLE FINGER , rofl!

[@JoshuaFluke1]

I mean its true

[@natturefrk]

@@JoshuaFluke1 SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO TRUE!!!!!

[@carldrogo9492]

Too many Edgelords on Stackoverflow.

[@marvinasas2060]

Yeah i read somewhere about stackoverflow. That's its like sooo good and so much stuff there and people even get jobs from that and all that. And then i asked some question there and it just got blocked. I tried it another time and people just acted like huge dicks. I tried to ask questions there a couple of times, but it seems like only assholes use that website. It's so fucking toxic. Like I even got insulted a few times out of nowhere.

[@icycaribe]

In IT since 1994. BRM. What is the draw that keeps people chasing coding when there's so many other careers with less challenges .

[@Luculent]

The biggest thing I'll ever tell anyone about being self-taught, don't ask the questions yourself on Stack Overflow. Most of the people there won't help you unless your question is worth their time, which is hella ambiguous. You're better off searching other websites.

[@TheMikernet]

What? Since when have StackOverflow users turned down the opportunity to answer a question that hasn't already been asked? I find it's by far the best way to get an answer to a question that is difficult to find elsewhere. Obviously don't ask questions that have a thousand good answers that are easy to find with a simple Google search or ones that have already been answered on StackOverflow, but why would that be a problem? If you respect people's time and search for the answer first, can't find it and explain your problem and why you are having difficulty with it then I find the StackOverflow community is spectacular at answering questions quickly and thoroughly.

[@Luculent]

@Mike M idk, I've had some... Interesting experiences with the platform. Others have different experiences with it. There just seems to be something off to me there. I don't mean to say never ask a question there, that came off the wrong way.

[@scurvofpcp]

@@TheMikernet Stack has been fugging useless for blender-python questions since blender went to 2.8, I'm still seeing people pooping out copypasta from blenders 2.7x era...actually I'm wondering if it is just bots doing that, if we are going to be candid.

[@anonthenon196]

If you need help with a programming related problem, I strongly suggest going to a forum dedicated to that programming language, whether it's C, C++ or Python.

[@XYZQ578]

Thanks dude. You really are doing a good thing here for all us out there, questioning ourselves and looking to set us on the right path. I'm 31 and few years back i had to make a career/lifestyle change after 10 years of being a roadie/tour manager/tech team leader. I was fucking tired of being exploited by the bosses and sleeping between travels around Europe and Asia. I got a no-brainer Corporate job and have been fucking struggling the self-tought way for over 2 years now. One year od swearing at the monitor I nie have organised my learning procces into pure fun, learning not one thing but 10 at at once to be able to be a 100% Independent 3D generalist. The harder something is to comprehend at first, the more relentles I become. Hope at some point I reach my goal and go self employed or freelance. Good Łuck to all You guys on Your journeys ! And thanks again Josh, You keep pumping us up !

[@portillolopezjuanmanuel8079]

"It's not what you know, it's wwho you blow." That my friends, is wisdom.

[@Sfsmacks]

Johannes Sitam in the 10+ years I’ve been attempting to figure my career path out, That is, till this day, the realest life quote I know.

[@gabrielsoloman5000]

your straightforwardness is fantastic, congrats

[@woundedhealer8575]

I was doing self-taught initially to see whether or not I would enjoy programming in general. Once I knew it was something I would love doing, I signed up for a boot camp I could use my GI Bill on. My problem always had to do with the starting point. I was learning code, sure, but had no idea how or when to use any of it. Which to me, is a big part of coding. If you don’t understand how and when to use code, then it’s kind of pointless, no?

[@deadcells963]

glad 3rd level education is free where I live so there's basically no cons ,

[@Juicein]

14:13 Best moment of the video, no insult to the content.

[@gavinicus]

From now on when people ask me about getting into coding or dev stuff, I'm just gonna send them this lol I have countless conversations saying a lot of this stuff and you broke it down really well. Great job on this!

[@Speeding_faster]

The dream: working remote ....I really like your honesty.....”driving a Tesla to show up for 20 mins” waste of money

[@Gripens1]

Great video! As someone who taught himself ML I must say that you really captured and explained well the pros and cons of learning something by yourself. There are quite a few problems with trying to learn something on your own though, if you want to learn something complex you gotta make sure you learn in the correct way, you cant skip on fundementals or you risk building all of your knowledge on a bad foundation.

[@monawoka97]

I feel like a ton of your code bootcamp pros also apply to college.

[@chairmanJackie]

I would also add community college. The pros and cons are kind of an in between of a bootcamp and university degree. Some places offer part-time classes (they will likely give you some sort of "certificate" at the end) versus doing a whole associates degree. But definitely agree with at least initially doing self-taught to gauge your interest and learning style .

[@jaredfontaine2002]

I just forgot how to make a function.... I was like WTF??? Am I stupid???

[@MofoMan2000]

I went to school, didn't learn too much from classes. I don't really think programming is a skill that can be taught well in a classroom. But I took a few things I did learn and started on my own game design projects that I WANTED to do. This got me noticed by a classmate who introduced me to a tiny game design studio that paid nothing. It was good experience, and from there I'm mostly self-taught. Now I have a good paying job programming at a game studio. It's basically my dream job, marrying passion with talent, and my path was what you might call "unconventional".

[@yimiyyussef]

"You're going to have to be okay with feeling like Forest Gump" LMAO

[@ibrahimhassan8239]

This is a real story, thanks man

[@rayman3610]

I always click that like before the video

[@JoshuaFluke1]

MVP

[@krishchandrahasan7955]

Just listening to you makes me feel better. Thanks Josh.